The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor
The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor is an adventure film released in 2008. Produced by Universal Pictures, it is the third installment of the studios’ remake Mummy franchise. Plot The film starts with a prologue set in 200 BC, narrated by Zi Yuan, which introduces the audience to Emperor Er Shi Huangdi, a tyrannical Chinese warlord with mastery over the five elements as well as shapeshifting abilities. His unbeatable army of thousands have conquered much of the land under heaven, and the threat posed by Han prompts an attempted assassination, which is the opening sequence of the film. As the Emperor sleeps, three men sneak into his chambers with their weapons ready…only to be instantly slain by the Emperor, who had been awake the entire time and had anticipated an attack. He used this assault as an excuse to declare war against the city of Chu. As Han conquered many and forces his surviving enemies to build a Great Wall around China to protect his lands, before burying them beneath it at task’s end, the cruel king realized that his ambitions outweighed his life-span; he would never be able to accomplish his goals in the years of mortals. He became obsessed with finding a way to cheat death, and the rumors of his wish spread across the land until a discovery was made at last. There was a powerful sorceror who possessed the secret to immortality, and Han sent out his trusted general and only genuine ‘friend’ Ming Guo to hire this wizard’s services. However, upon arriving Ming discovered that the sorceror was dead, and that only his daughter, Zi Yuan, remained. Upon returning, Ming introduced Yuan to Han, who was also taken by her beauty. He gave her permission to retrieve the source of the secret he so sought, and secretly commanded Guo that no man was to touch her. She lead the general to a library, where Yuan retrieved the sacred Oracle Bones, constructed ages ago, which contained ancient secrets from the Dawn of Time. But during the previous few days of researching, Ming and Yuan had grown attracted to each other, and risked the wrath of the Emperor by eventually making love one night. Unfortunately, a spy of Han spotted the affair, and raced off to tell his emperor. Upon returning with the Bones, Yuan went before the Emperor, and read an incantation which was written in a mysterious language the Emperor did not understand. Therefore, the true meaning of the words were unknown to Han, allowing Yuan to deceive the Emperor into thinking that she was granting him immortality. In actuality, she was casting an enchantment on Huangdi and all his soldiers, a terrible punishment which would activate if the Emperor were to ever cross her or her beloved Ming. Believing that he was now invincible, the Emperor brought Yuan to a balcony, and below in the courtyard was Ming Guo, captured. He was tied to four horses by different limbs, and Han claimed that if Yuan became his queen then he would spare Guo’s life. She did not fall for his bluff however, and the Emperor coldly gave the order. Ming was then ripped to pieces by the horses. Enraged at the Emperor’s cruelty, Yuan attacked him, only to then be stabbed in the side by Huangdi’s personal dragon dagger. Upon doing so the curse that Yuan had spoken earlier went into action, and Huangdi was horrified and confused as he began to weep mud. Soon he was covered in a coating of brown muddy earth, and then he was on fire, the intense heat burning the Emperor alive and hardening the mud until it became stone. Emperor Han had been imprisoned within a hollow statue of Terra Cotta, his burnt and ruined body trapped within the sculpture for all time. As this happened, the same curse began to transform the Emperor’s great army, until all of his soldiers had become imprisoned in hollow statues like him. The wounded Yuan fled with the Oracle Bones, never to be seen again for the ensuing thousands of years. The film then flashes forward to A.D. 1946, to retired adventurer and MI6 Agent Rick O’Connell. He suffers a dissapointing attempt to learn fly fishing, and eventually returns home to the family mansion, where he recalls his days as a Corporal of the French Foreign Legion. Meanwhile, his wife Evelyn is doing a reading of the sequel to her bestselling novel The Mummy, titled The Mummy Returns. The two books are in fact accounts of her and her husband’s former experiences, but disguised as adventure tales. When asked if the main characters, rugged hero Dash and plucky damsel Scarlet O’Keefe, are based on her husband and herself, Evelyn replies, “I can honestly say she’s a completely different person.” Meanwhile, in China, an archeological dig is progressing at the base of the massive Colossus, a giant statue of the Dragon Emperor. Heading this dig is the now-eighteen Alexander O’Connell, son of Rick and Evelyn, who has in fact dropped out of school without his parents’ knowledge to seek fame and fortune. His excavation is funded by professor Roger Wilson, an old friend of Alex’s father, who eagerly anticipates their goal: to find the legendary tomb of Er Shi Huangdi and his massive Terra-Cotta Army. As Wilson arrives at the site for a check up, the diggers finally discover the tomb’s entrance. Wilson and O’Connell venture into the chamber, braving multiple booby traps which claim the lives of three diggers. After solving a puzzling contraption, Alex unlocks the concealed room which houses the vast army and their dead leader, perched on a chariot with horse statues. As Alex examines the incredible find, a mysterious assassin skilled in martial arts attacks, subduing Wilson and engages Alex in combat. He manages to injure the assailant, in the process discovering the person is in fact a beautiful Chinese girl. At that moment Wilson reawakens and fires his gun at the girl, who flees. Back at the O’Connell mansion, Rick and Evey are visited by Foreign Office agent Benjamin Fry, who has come to offer the O’Connells one final assignment: to act as custodians for an ancient relic on its way to the Shanghai Museum (under Roger Wilson) in China, and to keep the object safe during the journey. The artifact-in-question is the mythical Eye of Shambhala, a mysterious crystal that legend stated could reveal the location of the long-lost paradise of Shambhala, known in the West as Shangri-la. Leaping at the opportunity to have some excitement in their lives again, the O’Connell’s accept, stating that their cover story could be that they were going to visit Evelyn’s brother, Jonathan Carnahan, who owns a nightclub in Shanghai. Meanwhile, at a military testing ground, the misguided General Yang and his lover, Colonel Choi, intend to steal the Eye and use the drops of Eternal Life water within to revive Er Shi Huangdi. Yang believed that China had become weak with corruption, and viewed Huangdi as their only hope of returning China to its former glory. To Yang and his faithful troops, the Emperor was a messiah-figure. Back at the Chinese museum in Shanghai, wherein the tomb of Er Shi Huangdi is displayed, Evelyn and Rick congratulate Alex on his discovery and Wilson arrives to admire his latest find. After an argument between him and his father, Alex leaves and bumps into the woman from the tomb, who introduces herself as Lin. Back in the main hall of the museum, Rick, Evelyn and Wilson are admiring the tomb of Huangdi, when suddenly General Yang enters, followed by his lover Choi. Yang reveals that Rick and Evelyn's work is not over yet, and Wilson reveals Yang as an old friend, before turning his pistol on Rick and Evelyn. A shocked Evelyn gasps 'WOTCHA!' as Wilson reveals that Yang had financed Alex's expedition and therefore the discovery of Huangdi was meant to happen. Rick looks aghast at the revelation of Yang's plan: to resurrect an army of mummies. Yang seizes the Eye of Shambhala, and forces Evelyn to read the ancient Chinese inscription upon its rim. Evelyn stutters that Chinese is not her main language, but she is bullied into reading it anyway, and the inscription on the Eye apparently says Only those of pure heart may open the Eye of Shambhala. Yang smiles at Choi as he realizes that they need Evelyn's blood, and Choi smirks as she seizes a dagger and attempts to slice Evelyn's finger. She eventually succeeds, and as Evelyn's blood falls upon the Eye, it opens up, becoming golden serpents which slither away from Yang's hand onto the museum floor. The Eye glows and the Emperor begins to awake. However... at this moment Lin and Alex attack, sending the room into chaos and sending the events into motion which will resurrect Er Shi Huangdi. Evelyn viciously attacks Choi, sending her into a pile of debris, and Alex turns his pistol upon Wilson, who stutters about their friendship. Just then, Lin seizes her dagger and kills the body of the Emperor in his tomb, but it turns out to be a decoy... and the real Emperor is frozen as a terracotta statue on horseback! With a rumble, both the horses and the Emperor are resurrected, and Yang bows before the Emperor, saying he can grant him immortality. The Emperor growls: 'IF YOU ARE LYING, YOU SHALL BURN.' Both Yang and Er Shi Huangdi race out of the museum on horseback and chariot. Before they depart, Wilson begs Er Shi Huangdi to take him with them, but Er Shi Huangdi carelessly kills him by decapitating him with a fireball. A massive chase through Shanghai ensues, as the Emperor and Yang flee to the military outpost, and Rick, Alex, Lin and Evelyn meet up with Jonathan Carnahan in order to successfully pursue the Emperor (Er Shi Huangdi had knocked out a portion of Jonathan's car during his escape, therefore infuriating Jonathan) and this leads to Lin and Alex going ahead in pursuit of Er Shi Huangdi, and Rick, Evelyn and Jonathan pursuing the Emperor and Yang in their vehicle. The O'Connells separate, with Alex and Lin heading towards the Emperor and Yang, and Rick and Jonathan attempt to distract the Emperor by shooting rockets at him and Yang. In retaliation, Yang and the Emperor attack, even while Lin and Alex attempt to assassinate the Emperor once more, and all this failed assassination attempt ensues is a massive explosion of fireworks in the middle of Shanghai, thus ruining the Chinese New Year for millions of civilians. Disheveled and dispirited, the O'Connells realize that the Emperor whom they are up against is superhuman, with powers over elements such as earth, water, fire and metal. He can command statues via telepathy and can deter rockets with one flick of his hand. He seems all but invincible... until Lin reminds the O'Connells that the only way to kill him properly is to stab him in the heart with a sacred Dagger. Lin also tells Rick and Alex that in order to prevent the Emperor from discovering the path to Shambala, they will have to attempt a highly dangerous climb over the Himalayas and discover the Gateway to Shambala. Rick reluctantly agrees and hires Mr Mcguire to fly them to India. Once in the Himalayas, the O'Connells have to battle against cold and mist and other perils. After a journey of two days, (during which Mcguire notices Yang and Er Shi Huangdi emerge from their plane and proceed up the mountains) Rick, Jonathan, Evelyn, Alex and Lin reach the famous Gateway, where they station themselves for battle. Finally, Yang and the Emperor arrive, with the Emperor telling Yang 'Clear a path to the Golden Tower: Prove yourself to me!' A battle erupts, wherein Yang's forces are dispatched by Rick and Alex. Even so, Yang overpowers the O'Connells, and all seems lost... until Lin calls upon three Yeti for assistance. The Yeti quickly overcome Yang's troops, and even defeat Yang himself. However, Er Shi Huangdi ascends the steps of the Tower, knocking Yang aside. Rick and Alex attempt to stop the Emperor, but he overpowers them with fireballs and icicles. Eventually, Jonathan sets off an explosive, and Yang stabs Rick, fatally wounding him, just as a massive avalanche erupts. Therefore, just as Jonathan has realized the Emperor is using a diamond to see the Path to Shambala, the avalanche sweeps everything away, burying the O'Connells beneath piles of snow. Fortunately the Yeti dig them out and it is only then that Evelyn realizes that Rick is mortally injured, and so they take him to Shambala. The O'Connells arrive at Shambala and, to their surprise, meet Zi Yuan, thought to have been dead long ago. It is revealed that she knew of the Yeti's existence, and called upon their help when fleeing from Er Shi Huangdi, and she drank from the Pool of Eternal Life to save her. She recognizes Lin, of course, and takes Rick to her chamber. Meanwhile, Yang appears to have second thoughts and is attempting to rejoin his lover Choi, but then Er Shi Huangdi notices his apparent desertation and commands him to rejoin him, saying 'Our destiny awaits!' Back at Shambala, Jonathan admires the beauty of the oasis and muses about a possible casino, and then Rick is healed, thanks to the water from Shambala. Shortly afterwards, Zi Yuan tells Lin she will need to sacrifice their immortality, but amazingly, Lin agrees. Shortly after, Er Shi Huangdi and Yang attack Shambala, and the Emperor notices both Zi Yuan and Lin, and remarks 'General Ming's daughter: your child will be mine!' He steps into the water of Shambala and regains his healthy human form, appearing as he did in his twenties, and then majestically emerges from the Pool as a triple-headed Dragon, hence his title The Dragon Emperor. He roars and snatches Lin, kidnapping her as he flies off to the military training ground by the Great Wall of China, with Yang astride his back. The O'Connells give chase, and soon they reemerge in China. Alex goes off immediately to rescue Lin, succeeding in doing so, and Yang reunites with a grateful Choi, who hands him his hat and together, both the lovers salute the Emperor, who majestically turns into his healthy human form. Er Shi Huangdi announces his plan for world conquest, 'crushing every hope of freedom,' and simultaneously Zi Yuan goes under the Wall to resurrect General Ming and all other enemies of the Emperor in a last-ditch attempt to duke it out with the Emperor. Er Shi Huangdi hears the explosion of earth which heralds the resurrection, and realizes, as he sees the resurrection, that Zi Yuan is here. He rallies his troops for battle, (having successfully resurrected his Terracotta Army) and charges into battle. Yang and Choi reluctantly follow. The Emperor fights valiantly before meeting Zi Yuan, whom he impales with his sword and throws her off a cliff. The O'Connells have teamed up with Lin's father, General Ming, who recognizes the name Zi Yuan. A battle commences between the Terracotta Army of Er Shi Huangdi and the Undead Army of Zi Yuan, commanded on one side by Er Shi Huangdi and on the opposition by General Ming. Choi realizes that the O'Connells are determined to stop the Emperor, as she has seen the Emperor return to the chamber beneath the Wall to entomb Ming and his armies again. However, the Emperor is thwarted in the attempt to retomb Ming via Alex O'Connell, who attempts to kill the Emperor, but then he is blocked by the Emperor's beast form. Rick appears and manages to half-stab the Emperor. Choi and her lover General Yang rush to the defence of their Messiah, the Emperor, Er Shi Huangdi, but are both presumably killed by a bomb. Back under the Wall, the Emperor and Rick duke it out. Lin has just witnessed her mother, Zi Yuan, perish, and she vows henceforth to stop the Emperor at any cost. Suddenly, General Yang appears, having miraculously survived the bomb, and attacks Evelyn. He is badly burnt from the bomb but he is still alive. Choi also appears, roaming her hand along a pillar, also badly burnt but still alive. General Yang attempts to stop the O'Connells from harming his god, but is forced into retreat by Evelyn, who punches and kicks him viciously until he ducks under some cogs. A terrified General Yang crawls away from the cogs and climbs up above them, and looks around in fear, but then Evelyn leaps at him and kicks him into a gear mechanism. General Yang is crushed like paper. Halfway through his painful death, his beautiful lover Choi runs forwards and sees Yang dying, so she grasps his hand and holds it tight. Yang sobs 'LET GO!,' but Choi sobs 'NEVER!' and they share a kiss before disappearing into the cog mechanism, which crushes and kills both General Yang and his lover Colonel Choi. With one foe remaining, Rick and Alex battle the Emperor. He reverts to man form and appears to show some loss for the death of his agents, but Rick challenges him to do battle. Er Shi Huangdi doesn't understand Rick's English, but he complies, and both Rick and Er Shi Huangdi fight hand-to-hand before Er Shi Huangdi gains the upper hand. Alex reawakens (having been knocked out by Er Shi Huangdi after the failed assassination attempt) and disappears, leaving a a clue in the sand for his father, Rick. Rick realizes what Alex means and rushes forward with the dagger which can kill the Emperor. The Emperor realizes his danger and grapples with Rick, forcing the dagger away from his heart. However, Alex appears at this moment, swinging down from above, as shown in his clue, and knocks Er Shi Huangdi off-balance, and therefore Rick O'Connell is able to plunge the blade of the sacred knife into Er Shi Huangdi's heart. Er Shi Huangdi chokes and splutters as fire, the element he had previously been in command of, overwhelms him. He gasps for air and hollers, but the flames envelop him and he finally explodes in a cloud of flame. Where seven had entered, four returned. Rick O'Connell, Alex O'Connell, Lin Guo and Evelyn O'Connell reemerge back into the sunlight and the living world, where Lin sees her father, General Ming Guo, overcome the Terracotta Army (which crumbles and explodes into sand) and then hail Zi Yuan before disappearing, too, into clouds of sand. A short epilogue ensues at Imhotep's, the bar upon which Jonathan Carnahan used to host, and which is now hosted by Mr Mcguire. McGuire relishes his opportunity at being famous, Lin and Alex become lovers, and Jonathan departs for Peru, a place where, he claims, mummies are redundant. However, a climatic scrawl relates that shortly after his arrival, mummies were found in Peru. Cast *Brendan Fraser … Richard (Rick) O'Connell *Maria Bello … Evelyn O'Connell *John Hannah … Jonathan Carnahan *Luke Ford … Alex O'Connell *Jet Li … Emperor Han *Michelle Yeoh … Zi Yuan *Isabella Leong …. Lin *Anthony Wong Chau-Sang … General Yang *Russell Wong … General Ming Guo *Liam Cunningham … "Mad Dog" Maguire *David Calder … Professor Roger Wilson *Jessey Meng …. Choi *Tian Liang … Li Zhou *Albert Kwan … Chu Wah *Alison Louder … Woman in Bookstore *Marcia Nasatir … Russian Princess *Emerald Starr … Man in Bar *Helen Feng … Nightclub Singer *Stella Maryna Troshyna … Brunette at Imhotep's *James Bradford … Butler Jameson *Daniel Giverin … Benjamin Fry *James Bradford … Butler Jameson Yang's Troops *Jacky Wu … Assassin #1 *Binghua Wei … Assassin #2 *Guo Jing … Assassin #3 *Ken Tran … Yang's Soldier #1 *Allan Yuk-lun Chou … Yang's Soldier #2 *Fernando Chien … Yang's Soldier #3 *Mac Jeffrey Ong … Yang's Soldier #4 *Chris Mark … Yang's Soldier #5 *James Mark … Yang's Soldier #6 *Mike Ching … Yang's Soldier #7 *Darryl Quon … Yang's Soldier #8 *Alex Chiang … Yang's Soldier #9 *Paul Wu … Yang's Soldier #10 *Larry Lam … Yang's Soldier #11 *Brian Ho … Yang's Soldier #12 *Vi-Hung Luv … Yang's Soldier #13 *Phong Doan Huy … Yang's Soldier #14 Others *Kyle Burnett Cashulin … Mad Dog’s Pal #1 *Charles Esposito … Mad Dog’s Pal #2 *Michael Scherer …Yeti #1 *Scott Taylor … Yeti #2 *Kham Tri Vixaysy … Chinese Digger #1 *Don Lew … Chinese Digger #2 *Freda Foh Shen … Narrator *Regis Attiow … Mystic #1 *Tony Wai … Mystic #2 *Yungstun Wu … Mystic #3 *Xiang Guangxu … Mystic #4 *Cong-Quyen Lam … Mystic #5 Uncredited *Vic Armstrong … Dancer in Nightclub Trivia * The idea of the emperor and his army is based on the real-life Qin emperor Qin Shi Huang, who was buried amidst thousands of crafted and fired terra cotta soldiers, called the Terracotta Army, dated at latest to 210 BC. * In September 2006, director Joe Johnston was originally offered the helm by Universal Pictures, who intended to start filming early in 2007. * The film was shot in Montreal and China. * Principal photography started at Mel’s Cite du Cinema in Montreal. * Chinese cultural advisers aided director Rob Cohen in order to depict the Qin Dynasty language and ceremonies. * The crew frequently had to halt in and near Shanghai when soldiers marched. The setting of the desert battlefield was actually a training facility for the Chinese army that was leased. * The visual effects were done by two Los Angeles-based VFX houses. * The pool of water resembling diamonds took Rhythm and Hues 11 months to complete. * The award winning A.I software Massive which was used on Lord of the Rings was used to create the undead battle scenes. * Design company Imaginary Forces created the opening title sequence and end titles. To portray an "accurate and historic China," they turned to calligrapher T.Z. Yuan for ink brush writing. * John Debney provided additional re-scored material for most of the bigger action sequences. * Brendan Fraser and John Hannah are the only actors to appear in all three Mummy movies. * Brendan Fraser, who plays Rick, was born in 1968, and Maria Bello who plays Evelyn, was born in 1967, while Luke Ford, who plays their son Alex, was born in 1981 and is only 13 years younger than Fraser and 14 years younger than Bello. * After the car chase through Shanghai, Alex O'Connell (Luke Ford) says that he was "willing to go on a little faith" for his actions upon awaking the Emperor. Rick O'Connell (Brendan Fraser) had spoken the same line in the first Mummy. * Alex leaves a clue in the sand during the climax. Alex did the same thing as a boy in The Mummy Returns. Appearances All appearances are considered first appearances. For character appearances see the "Cast" section. Mentioned Characters * Imhotep Creatures *Yeti *horse Locations England: * Oxfordshire China: * Monastery of Turfan * Chu * Qin Province * Great Wall of China * Shanghai Tibet: * Gateway to Shambala * Shambala Artifacts * Dragon Dagger * Eye of Shangri-La * Oracle Bones 4 (film order) 5 (chronological)